How do I confirm that the recharging problem is the computer and not the battery? I have a Dell Latitude running XP. I downloaded CNET program BatteryCare and bought a new battery. It's not charging at all and everytime I move the laptop it shuts off since the level of charge is 0%. If it's the computer then the expense to fix it is probably more than it's worth.

If you have a docking station tryy charging out of the station. A charger designed for just the laptop 65w will not charge a laptop in a docking station. 90w needed. Try charging without turning on laptop over night. Check battery settings in control panel. Batteries that are totally discharged do strange things sometimes.

I had a laptop quit working a few months ago. It was less than 2 years old. Local Tech said it was probably the motherboard. Manufacturer Tech Support couldn’t even tell the Tech the price of a motherboard replacement nor where to order one.

I would bet on the connection of the charger where it is connects to the laptop motherboard. Thats where they fail first. The connections on those is really weak. Its the little connection just inside the case and mounts on the motherboard. Requires the dismantling of the case to get to the motherboard and re-solder the connections to the motherboard itself. I owned a computer store and have seen it over and over.

Check brand website to see if the battery has been recalled. HP has some recalls. I have a bad battery for a HP and removed it and run the laptop on the charger. If it will not run on a charger the charger is probably bad.

8
posted on 01/02/2013 4:49:08 PM PST
by mountainlion
(Live well for those that did not make it back.)

If you have a docking station try charging out of the station. A charger designed for just the laptop 65w will not charge a laptop in a docking station. 90w needed. Try charging without turning on laptop over night. Check battery settings in control panel. Batteries that are totally discharged do strange things sometimes. The charger could also be bad. It run the computer just fine with charging. This also happens if some how you got the wrong charger. I have seen dells running on a HP charger just fine but the battery won’t charge.

When you say you move the laptop and it shuts off do you still have the charger plugged in at that time? Laptop chargers have a tendency to break wires right where the wire meets the molded plug that plugs into the laptop.

Plug the laptop in without the battery. If the laptop is not operational, it's probably the power supply or the contact between the power supply and the laptop.

If it is operational, check where the battery contacts come in contact with the inside case of the laptop. Using this information, if possible, Place the laptop in an orientation where the weight of the battery will bring it into better contact with the laptop contacts inside. If the battery charges in this orientation, you should be able to get this fixed very cheaply: it means the copper contacts are the issue and they just have to be cleaned and bent slightly to make better contact with the battery.

13
posted on 01/02/2013 4:57:31 PM PST
by FredZarguna
("The fundamental laws [of a] large part of physics and the whole of chemistry are completely known")

Try this: with the laptop plugged into the charger, remove the battery, then put it back in. Don’t know why this works on some laptops but it does. The battery indicator in the lower right corner of your laptop screen should show that it is charging.

It could be the DC jack, if you’re plugging it in at the laptop and not a docking station. This happened to me with a Toshiba laptop. Bought a new brick and a new battery, neither fixed the problem. Had to resolder the jack to the motherboard.

Beware of Dell. Two years or so ago they were turning out laptops with inadequate wattage chargers.On a particular laptop it required a 140-180 Watt charger and they only provided a 90 Watt.They kept changing BIOS trying to compensate for low power input and other ridiculous quick fixes.Took a big fight with irate customers before they finally did the right thing and replaced them with higher wattage chargers.Was quite a stink on their customer forum, cussing, threatening lawyers, etc, etc.

“Try this: with the laptop plugged into the charger, remove the battery, then put it back in. Dont know why this works on some laptops but it does. The battery indicator in the lower right corner of your laptop screen should show that it is charging.”
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I have done that with my Toshiba.
If I pull the DC power plug, the computer will still run for maybe 5-10 seconds before going dead.
If I plug the DC cord back in before it shuts down, the charge light will come on for a short time (maybe 5-10 seconds), then go back out.
I never ran the computer, now over four years old, on battery, so the battery has probably cooked itself.
I think it is best to cycle the battery from time to time, by periodically operating on battery for a normal charged period.

Had a Dell (Latitude?) laptop that needed the battery replaced. After I got a new one, the replacement would not charge unless you actually removed it and reinstalled it, then it would charge. I had to do this each night because it would not charge if the unit was running either, but it charged fine if it was removed and reinstalled.

Had our IT company see if any settings were changed, but they could not find anything either. Still have the darn thing, the wife uses it for email and it still runs fine plugged in, if you expect to need the battery, take it out and put it back in and a few hours later, you have 2 hours of battery power.

Worth a try, after closing the computer, unhinge the battery and reinstall, plug in overnight and see if it charges. If so, congratulations, you are now a charter member of the WTF is going on here club?

I had a similar problem with a laptop and it turned out to be a factory defect with the computer. Found out only when I gave up and took it to a local small business that is a repair shop. They shipped it off to the manufacturer and I got it fixed for free.
I guess some recall defects are not sent to the retail purchaser.

Dell is notorious for this battery charging problem. Do a quick internet search and you will see. My Dell laptop became a desktop computer after the first year because it has to be plugged in to work. Even a new battery didn’t help. Same thing happened to a relative’s Dell laptop.

It could be your charger or your AC Jack where your power cord plugs into computer. I have a Gateway, and the jack is the problem. It only cost about $15 if you do it yourself. Probably $100 plus if shop repair.

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